Implantable electrical signal generators have been used successfully for treating a variety of diseases, including chronic pain. For example, chronic low back an leg pain have been successfully treated using implantable neurostimulator systems that apply electrical signals to selected regions of the spinal cord. While spinal cord stimulation can theoretically be used to treat many types of pain by altering afferent pain signals running through the spinal cord, some types of pain may be difficult to treat via spinal cord stimulation or may result in unintended side effects. In such situations, it may be desirable to apply pain treating electrical signals at peripheral areas closer in proximity to the pain.
Such peripheral nerve stimulation or peripheral nerve field stimulation, as it is often called, does not have as long of a history of use for treatment of pain with implantable medical devices, relative to spinal cord stimulation. Accordingly, new methods, techniques and devices for application of electrical signals to the periphery for treating pain are still being developed. For example, new methods, techniques and devices may be needed to ensure that leads for applying electrical signals to peripheral nerves are properly positioned when implanted so that electrical signals emitted from the lead “capture” the desired peripheral nerves.